Country Facts - Papua New Guinea

The People

Nationality

Papua New Guinean(s)

Ethnic Composition

Indigenous Papua New Guineans vary considerably in ethnic origins, physical appearance, and spoken languages. The indigenous people are Melanesians. Papuan, Negrito, Micronesian, and Polynesian groups also make up part of the population. Of the non-indigenous population, the largest group is Australian, followed by others of European and Chinese origin.

Religious Composition

Indigenous beliefs	34%
Roman Catholic	22%
Lutheran	16%
Presbyterian/ Methodist/ London/Missionary	8%
Anglican	5%
Evangelical Alliance	4%
Seventh-Day Adventist	1%
Other Protestant sects	10%

Languages Spoken

English 1% to 2%, Pidgin English widespread (a Melanesian lingua franca with roots primarily in English and German), Motu (lingua franca of Papuan derivation) spoken in Papua region. Around 800 languages are spoken in the Papua region.

Education and Literacy

Education in Papua New Guinea is not compulsory. Literacy is listed at 64.5 percent; 72 percent of adult males are literate, while 57 percent of adult females are literate. (2000)

Labor Force

Total: 2.3 million (1999)
By occupation : agriculture 85%

Geography

Land Mass Total

178,703 sq mi (462,840 sq km)

Land

174,850 sq mi (452,860 sq km)

Water

3,853 sq mi (9,980 sq km)

Land Boundaries

Total: 509 mi (820 km)

Border countries: Indonesia 509 mi (820 km)

Coastline

3,201 mi (5,152 km)

Maritime claim

Continental shelf: 656 ft (200 m) depth or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate/Weather

Tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation

Terrain

Mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills

Elevation extremes

Lowest: Pacific Ocean 0 ft (0 m)
Highest: Mount Wilhelm 14,793 ft (4,509 m)

Natural Resources

Gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries

Land use

Arable land	0.1%
Permanent crops	1%
Other	99%

(1998)

Natural hazards

Active volcanism; situated along the Pacific "Rim of Fire"; the country is subject to frequent and sometimes severe earthquakes; mudslides; tsunamis.

Environment - current issues

Rain forest subject to deforestation as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; pollution from mining projects; severe drought

Geography Note

Papua New Guinea shares island of New Guinea with Indonesia; one of world's largest swamps along southwest coast.

Demographics

Population

5,172,033 (July 2002)

Age structure

0-14 years:	38.6%	Male: 1,013,936	Female: 980,841
15-64 years:	57.7%	Male: 1,544,650	Female: 1,440,628
65 years and over:	3.7%	Male: 90,661	Female: 101,317

(2002))

Growth Rate

2.39% (2002)

Life Expectancy

63.83 years (2002)
Female: 66.03 years
Male: 61.73 years

GDP Per Capita

Purchasing power parity
US$2,400 (2001)

Infant Mortality

56.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2002)

Sex ratio

At birth:	1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years:	1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years:	1.07 male(s)/female
65 years and over:	0.9 male(s)/female
Total population:	1.05 male(s)/female

(2002)

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002)

Economy & Trade

Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85 percent of the population. Mineral deposits, including oil, copper, and gold, account for 72 percent of export earnings. The economy has been in decline since 1998 and will probably continue to falter well into 2004. Prime Minister Mekere Morauta and his successor, Michael Somare, have tried to restore integrity to state institutions, stabilize the currency (the kina), restore stability to the national budget, privatize public enterprises where appropriate, and ensure ongoing peace on Bougainville. The government has had considerable success in attracting international support, specifically gaining the support of the IMF and the World Bank in securing development assistance loans. Significant challenges remain for Somare, however, including gaining further investor confidence, specifically for the proposed Papua New Guinea-Australia oil pipeline, continuing efforts to privatize government assets, and maintaining the support of members of Parliament. GDP fell by 0.5 percent in 2002, in the prolongation of a recession from 2000 and 2001, when GDP had contracted by 1.2 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively. The drop in growth in 2002 resulted from the continued contraction of the mining and oil sectors, which account for over 20 percent of GDP.

Unemployment

N/A

Inflation Rate

10.3% (2001)

Industries

Copra crushing, palm oil processing, plywood production, wood chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; crude oil production; construction, tourism.

Exports

US$1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Imports

US$1.024 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Total Trade

Purchasing power parity
GDP US$12.2 billion (2001)

Top Export Partners

Australia 30%, Japan 11%, China 6%, Germany 4%, South Korea 4%, UK 3%, Philippines 1%, US 1% (2000)

Top Import Partners

Australia 50%, Singapore 20%, Japan 4%, NZ 4%, Indonesia 3%, Malaysia 3%, US 2% (2000)

Top Exports

Oil, gold, copper ore, logs, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, crayfish and prawns

Top Imports

Machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, fuels, chemicals

Debt - external

US$2.6 billion (2000)

Economic aid

US$400 million (1999)

Fiscal Year:

Calendar year

Business Workweek

	Monday - Friday	Saturday - Sunday
Offices	8a.m. to 4:30p.m.	Closed
Retail	9a.m. to 5p.m.	Slightly shorter hours on the weekend.
Banks	Monday to Thursday 9a.m. to 2p.m. Friday 9a.m. to 5p.m.	Saturday 8a.m. to noon.
Government	8a.m. to 4p.m.	Closed

Holidays

Official Holidays

Holidays	2003	2004	2005
New Year's Day	January 1	January 1	January 1
Good Friday	April 18	April 9	March 25
Easter¹	April 20	April 11	March 27
Easter Monday	April 21	April 12	March 28
Queen's Birthday²	June 9	June 7	June 6
Independence Day	September 16	September 16	September 16
Christmas Day³	December 25	December 25	December 25
Boxing Day	December 26	December 26	December 26

¹	Easter, a Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is the first Sunday after the full moon and the vernal equinox (fixed in the Gregorian calendar at March 21), and often observed with Good Friday and Easter Monday. In the West, Easter is predicted using the Gregorian calendar, while Eastern Orthodox Christians use the much older Julian calendar, and celebrate 13 days later.
²	First Monday in June.
³	Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. In A.D.320, Pope Julius I fixed the date at December 25 based on the Gregorian calendar. The Orthodox church calculates Christmas using the Julian calendar and celebrates 13 days later on January 7.

Country information used by permission of World Trade Press